Keno Is a Game for Everyone

One of the attractive attributes of Keno is that it really is a game for everyone. Adults and children alike can play Keno and that is why today it is included in party games.

Of course, if you use Keno at a party of mixed ages, you can't take bets like in casino Keno, but you certainly can offer prizes for winners. Everyone likes to get prizes whether they are stuffed animals, games or a ticket to a cinema. Many organizations hold Keno parties in order to raise money for charities or for their own organization. They take a certain percentage of the money raised by the sale of the Keno tickets for their own purposes and use the rest as prizes, either cash prizes or attractive items such as DVD players, clock radios, MP3's, etc. Parties that include Keno as one of their party games are always well attended.

Some Keno History

Keno has an especially interesting and colorful history. It originated in China over 2000 years ago when a Han dynasty chief sought a way to collect money from his citizens to fund his army. He invented a game of chance - a lottery - with a chart of 120 Chinese characters, tickets for sale, and money prizes for guessing the correct characters chosen randomly. The game was a great success with the Chinese people and legend has it that it was used again to fund the building of the Great Wall of China.

By the time Keno had moved to the Western world, the number of characters had dropped to 80, and around the beginning of the 20th century, the Chinese characters were replaced by numbers to attract more players. That's how modern Keno was born.

It's Easy to Play Keno

Standard Keno has some kind of chart or board with 80 numbers, Keno cards or tickets numbered from 1 to 80, and a clear ball or basket with numbered balls also from 1 to 80. Depending on the house or party rules, players buy their tickets and then pick between 10 to 20 numbers. If this is an adults' game or played in a casino, bets are taken. If this is a mixed ages game no bets are made and prizes come from the sale of the Keno tickets.

The Keno caller picks 20 numbers out of the ball or basket randomly. In casinos this is done by computer and when he calls each number, it lights up on the board. In a house party, the caller would probably mark the number on the chart or board. After all 20 numbers are called, players collect their winnings in accordance with the number of picks that match the numbers called.

Keno is an easy, relaxing and entertaining game suitable to be included in party games because it requires no strategizing and very little thought. You only need to concentrate on the numbers being called. It's a fun game for everyone.